J. Stern & Co. LLP Boosts Stock Position in Alphabet Inc. $GOOG

Key Points

• J. Stern & Co. LLP increased its stake in Alphabet Inc. by 8.5% in Q1, holding 393,476 shares worth approximately $61.48 million.
• Several analysts have rated Alphabet positively, with five analysts$215.19.
• Alphabet recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.21, resulting in an annualized yield of 0.4%.

J. Stern & Co. LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG - Free Report) by 8.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 393,476 shares of the information services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 30,725 shares during the period. Alphabet comprises 5.9% of J. Stern & Co. LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. J. Stern & Co. LLP's holdings in Alphabet were worth $61,476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Alphabet by 111.8% during the first quarter. Principia Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 161 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alphabet in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. bought a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Elevate Wealth Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in Alphabet during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. 27.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Alphabet Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:GOOG traded up $1.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $213.53. 24,609,133 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,608,977. The company has a current ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market cap of $2.58 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.74, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $190.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $175.38. Alphabet Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.66 and a 1-year high of $215.34.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The information services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.19. Alphabet had a net margin of 31.12% and a return on equity of 34.31%. The firm had revenue of $96.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.67 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.89 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Alphabet Inc. will post 8.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Alphabet Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Alphabet's payout ratio is 8.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Needham & Company LLC lowered shares of Alphabet from a "buy" rating to a "cautious" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up previously from $185.00) on shares of Alphabet in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Pivotal Research upped their target price on shares of Alphabet from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Alphabet in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Alphabet news, insider John Kent Walker sold 23,820 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.70, for a total value of $4,637,754.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 42,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,371,905.30. This represents a 35.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John L. Hennessy sold 600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.79, for a total value of $122,274.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 6,316 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,287,137.64. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 254,608 shares of company stock worth $47,204,035. Company insiders own 12.99% of the company's stock.

About Alphabet

Alphabet Inc offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets segments. The Google Services segment provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.